Check a Car's Retail Valuation

Know the real number before you negotiate — not the one the advert is hoping you'll believe.

An asking price tells you what a seller wants; it doesn't tell you what a car is actually worth. Our £3 check includes a retail valuation drawn from the same trade data used across the motor industry, giving you a real number to negotiate against instead of guessing from a handful of similar listings.

The valuation sits alongside the full history report — outstanding finance, the stolen marker, write-off category, scrapped status, keeper history, plate changes, MOT and tax status — so a car priced above its valuation, or a suspiciously cheap one, can both be understood in context rather than in isolation.

How the valuation helps you negotiate

1. Retail valuation drawn from trade data, not scraped from classified listings.
2. A price well above the valuation is a straightforward opening for negotiation.
3. A price well below the valuation is worth checking against the history report for a reason why.
4. Used across our own PDF policy documents for vehicle-value fields, so it's the same data trusted internally.
5. Comes included in the £3 check alongside finance, stolen, write-off and keeper history.

Is the valuation the same as what a dealer would offer me?

It's a retail figure — broadly what the car should sell for privately or on a forecourt — rather than a trade-in offer, which dealers typically set lower to leave room for their own margin and reconditioning costs.

Why is the car I'm looking at priced well below its valuation?

Sometimes a genuine bargain; often a reason worth knowing before you view — outstanding finance, a write-off history, or an urgent sale. Run the full £3 check alongside the valuation so you're negotiating with the whole picture, not just the number.

Does the valuation cost extra?

No — it's included in the standard £3 check along with the full history report, and the check is free to re-use on our insurance quotes for 30 days.

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